Hikueru
Hikueru, Tiveru, or Te Kārena, is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls. The closest land to Hikueru is Tekokota Atoll, located 22 km to the north.
NASA picture of Hikueru Atoll | |
Hikueru Location in French Polynesia | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Pacific Ocean |
| Coordinates | 17°35′20″S 142°37′00″W |
| Archipelago | Tuamotus |
| Area | 79 km2 (31 sq mi) (lagoon) 8 km2 (3 sq mi) (above water) |
| Length | 15 km (9.3 mi) |
| Width | 9.5 km (5.9 mi) |
| Administration | |
France | |
| Overseas collectivity | French Polynesia |
| Administrative subdivision | Îles Tuamotu-Gambier |
| Commune | Hikueru |
| Largest settlement | Tupapati |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 179 (2017) |
Hikueru Atoll's shape is roughly oval and it is 15 km in length and 9.5 km in width. It covers a land area of 8 km2 and a lagoon area of 79 km2. There are many motu on its reef with a combined land area of about 25 km2. Its lagoon is deep, with numerous coral heads.
At the 2012 census, the population of the commune of Hikueru was 241, of which 150 on Hikueru proper, and 91 on the atoll of Marokau. Its most important village is Tupapati, located on the atoll Hikueru. There is a territorial airport on Hikueru which was opened in 2000.
Hikueru was the setting for Armstrong Sperry's novel Call It Courage, which won the Newbery Medal in 1941.